Letter to the Editor: Gun ban

By SCOTT H. JONESQuinbyS.C.

Editor,

By way of introduction, I'll describe myself the way Barack Obama did. Though not bitter, I certainly do cling to God and my guns.

Most people in my circle of friends and associates already share my core beliefs. However, it seems that lately, almost every day, I run into someone who has no clue about Obama's voting record on gun control. Since the mainstream media has no interest in the matter, most people remain uninformed.

Therefore, I address this to the multitude of folks who either believe it doesn't matter who you vote for this year, or have already made a decision to vote for Obama without being fully informed. Either way, the possibility, in my opinion, of an Obama win must be considered dangerous to our basic freedoms.

I vote for only one issue, that being the Second Amendment to our Bill of Rights under the Constitution of the United States of America, granted to us by our founding fathers in their God inspired wisdom. The Second Amendment represents our first freedom, the right to bear arms.

Our first freedom has recently undergone the scrutiny of the Supreme Court of the United States; who wisely upheld our individual right to take up arms and defend ourselves in the landmark case Heller v. Washington, D.C. Law abiding citizens in our nation's capital had successfully been disarmed by gun hating politicians, resulting in a huge wave of street violence and home invasions. With the assistance and encouragement of the National Rifle Association, the citizens of Washington are slowly recovering their Second Amendment rights.

I don't care if Barack Obama sat and listened to the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's American hating rhetoric for 20 years; nor do I care that he sat in William Ayers' den discussing domestic terrorism and how mean America is. I only care that he is part of a growing movement in this country that wants to rob us of our right to defend ourselves with a firearm if necessary. If you want to disarm me, then you are a clear and present danger to all law abiding Americans.

Clearly, support for Barack Obama transcends race, so his actions should be questioned by everyone. Sadly, it is the African American voting community which will be impacted most adversely by the loss of gun rights. Statistically, black on black crime accounts for a disproportionate amount of the criminal activity across the nation. So, while African Americans can and should be proud of Obama, they should also realize that he would go after their guns too. It would be a disaster for us all.

Just ask the people of Chicago, which is Obama's adopted home town, and the locus of his political power. Chicago has a gun ban more restrictive than that faced by the citizens of Washington, DC. Yet, Chicago has become one of the most violent cities in the world. Street violence and home invasions are at epidemic levels. People there are persecuted and prosecuted for defending themselves in their own homes. My friends, let me assure you all, Barack Obama's fingerprints are all over this problem.

My fellow citizens, Obama has never, not even once, voted to safeguard our Second Amendment rights. Furthermore, he has consistently voted to disarm all Americans. In his brief political career, he has make it clear that if he had the power, he would confiscate every legally owned weapon in America.

Of course,Obama assures us he's not interested in taking away our guns, but past actions still count for something, and it's crystal clear that Obama is not being truthful.

The NRA compiles data on the voting records of every elected official in America at all levels of government. They use the data to score politicians on their support of the Second Amendment. Barack Obama scores a zero (0). He has never, not even once, voted in favor of our right to bear arms. Just for the record, John McCain scores 95.4 percent for his support of your right to protect yourself and your family. He has also received an official endorsement from the NRA, which is no easy task.

We all know we can't rely on the police to protect us in our homes. They can't be everywhere at the same time. They can only show up after the fact and try to clean up the mess. We must take the initiative and defend ourselves, which relates directly back to our constitutional right to bear arms.

Consider this. Throughout history, it has been a distinctive feature of the free man that he possess arms with which to defend himself, while it has been a distinctive feature of the slave that he does not possess the same right to arms.

Join me in preserving our right as responsible citizens to protect ourselves, our families, and our homes. We must each do our part to keep America a free nation.